Your cellphone can help fight crime

Emergency alerts can now be sent to mobile devices in Greenville

Cellphones are a critical part of our lives, and now police are using them to help fight crime.

Greenville police said in the past, they sent emergency alert notifications by calling landline phones. The city receives quarterly updates from phone companies to acquire published telephone numbers for approximately 70,000 residents.

But, since mobile devices are a popular method of communication these days, the police department thought it would be a good idea to give people the option to receive alerts on their cell phones.

“The biggest benefit of the program is for us to get information out quickly to the community,” said spokesman Officer Johnathan Bragg.

Police officers used the system recently when they searched for suspects in the Augusta Street area. They alerted people, but said many didn't get the messages because their cell phones weren't registered.

“If we’re looking for somebody or if it’s a disaster, such as a leak, it’s important for us to get that information out and what to do and how to prepare for a certain situation,” Bragg said.

Sign up online, and then if trouble hits your neighborhood, you’ll receive a call from dispatch explaining what’s going on in a recorded message and what you need to do.

If you don’t live in Greenville, but work in the city, police said you can register as well.

So far, 40 people have signed up on the self-registration portal which has been online for only about two weeks. If you’d like to sign up, just visit the Links We Mentioned section.

If you decide you don't want to receive notifications on your landline phone, you can choose to opt out, but you have to create an account and register under the number and address the city currently calls.

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